HISTORY

In September, 1971, Prisoners took control of Attica Correctional Facility. After the Attica Liberation Faction (ALF) was founded in June 1971 by Frank Lott, Donald Noble, Carl Jones-EL, Herbert X. Blyden, and Peter Butler. ALF was created because the conditions in Attica were inhumane—prisoners spent 14-16 hours/day in their cells, they made 20 cents to $1 per day, and suffered racialized violence from the CO’s. In response to these conditions and endeavoring to change the prison system, ALF presented The Attica Manifesto to Commissioner Oswald and Governor Rockefeller on July 2nd, 1971. The AFL had 27 demands centered around their human rights, legal rights, segregation, political persecution, racial persecution, religious freedom, education access, slave wages, as well as better access to communication with the outside.

• We are men! We are not beasts and do not intend to be treated as such. The entire prison populace has set forth to change forever the ruthless brutalization and disregard for the lives of the prisoners here and throughout the United States. What has happened here is but the sound before the fury of those who are oppressed” - L.D. Barkley 

After many failed attempts of the AFL reaching out to the Government and Conditions grew worse The Uprising began on September 9th: after subduing the guards in the tunnel that divides the Prison, over 1200 prisoners took over Cell Block D, take 40 CO hostages and a committee of prisoners drew up five demands to end the takeover, that became the “15 practical proposals” delivered to Oswald on September 10th: 33 Observers are called to Attica to aid in negotiations. On September 13th, 2021after  Governor Rockefeller refuses to negotiate with the ALF he sends in State Troopers to retake the prison with military-grade weapons and gas, the prisoners have no guns and have not harmed any hostages. Despite that Hundreds of Prisoners are shot and tortured by guards 39 men die during the retaking 9 of the Hostages were shot.

In The Aftermath  Oswald, Rockefeller, and Nixon work at all levels of government to cover up the unnecessary and racially motivated murder they authorized, including suppression of the autopsies of the State murdered hostages, feeding brazen lies to the media, as well as spreading false claims that prisoners had executed and castrated hostages. Rockefeller and Nixon shared the same racist delusion that the Attica Uprising was part of a wider threat posed to the State by “Black Identity Extremists like Angela Davis and the Black Panthers” 

The Legacy of Attica influenced All of the human rights that have been won in the past 50 years to stand on the shoulders of the Attica Brothers rebellion and sacrifice, including access to education, quality of food and education, etc. Many of the demands the Attica Brothers originally proposed must still be fought for by prison abolitionists today.  

The Legacy of Attica Influences our work at the Queers for Justice at The Newburgh LGBTQ+ Center. That is why we are doing our week of Attica From September 9th to the 13th, 2021.